Photo: Baidu.com

The following guide is part of a mini-series of travel articles that will be appearing in China Explorer Destinations to give those of you who own your own pair of wheels in the shape of a car or motorbike, some ideas for short weekend breaks.

We start with the city of Shanghai and three lesser known locations that with the use your own transport are easily accessible for those days when the city has just become too much and the weather tempts you outdoors.

1. Shengsi Island Group (嵊泗列岛)

The island group known as Shengsi is located to the east of the city of Hangzhou, south of Shanghai in the Bay of Hangzhou (杭州湾). The group is made up of hundreds of rocks of varying sizes, and of all different shapes and colors. The largest of them is Sijiao (斯礁) island that stands at 21.2 meters high.

The group in its entirety boasts 60 scenic spots. Of these 60 the best are found on Sijiao, Huanglong (黄龙), Shengshan (嵊山) and Huadao (花岛). These islands are home to some of the best natural beaches in the Shanghai and Hangzhou region and form a quite hard to reach haven during the warm summer months.

How to get there:

Take the Shanghai Nanpu Bridge (南浦大桥), the A20 Waihuan 外环 and then connect onto the A2 Hulu Motorway (沪芦公路). It is then 90 km to the Lizhushan (李柱山) docks.

2. Mt. Tiantai (天台山)

The atmosphere of Mt Tiantai is very Chinese. With red walls and Chinese style bridges, this place is steeped in history and also located in a stunning natural setting.

This is where the very first Chinese school of Buddhism was established in the Sui dynasty (7th century). The Tiantai school had over 1000 establishments during its peak. As one of the most important places in Chinese Buddhist history, the temple on Tiantai Mountain is well persevered and makes for a very relaxing day out with the family.

How to get there:

Take the A8 Huhang Motorway (沪杭高速公路) for 160 km until almost at Hangzhou, then peal off towards Ningbo (宁波) over the Qiantang Bridge (钱塘江大桥) and head along the Shangsan Motorway (上三高速) for 200 km until you reach the Tiantai exit.

Photo: Sina.com

Mt. Tianzhu (天柱山)

This little slice of Chinese natural beauty lies in the southwest corner of the often-overlooked Anhui province. Tianzhu is part of the bigger Huangshan range, which not only over shadows it in a literal sense, but also in terms of popularity.

All of this of course makes it a perfect option for a fine weather weekend excursion. Although a little far, at 1300km from Shanghai, the mountain area itself offers a good choice of overnight accommodation to choose from.

How to get there:

Take the Shang-wu-ning Motorway (上武宁高速) for 200 km to Nanjing then go by way of the Yangtze Bridge over to Hefei (合肥) and take G318 to the Qianshan (潜山) exit. It is another 11 km from the exit.

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